AT&T called Netflix CEO Reed Hastings "arrogant" because he argued that the company shouldn't pay for additional charges for the heavy bandwidth telecom companies provide. He said that giant Internet service providers use their "market position" to make such demands.
In the absence of strong net neutrality, Internet service providers (ISPs) can ask too much for the interconnection required to distribute the utmost Internet connection possible. "The big ISPs can make these demands -- driving up costs and prices for everyone else -- because of their market position," said Hastings in a blog post.
In defense to Hastings accusations that ISPs were just "power tripping,"the second largest wireless network provider in the United States reacted fiercely implying that you can't get something for free.
Jim Cicconi, head of AT&T's public policy team, told Financial Times, "Mr. Hastings' arrogant proposition is that everyone else should pay but Netflix. That may be a nice deal if he can get it. But it's not how the internet, or telecommunication for that matter, has ever worked." he said.
He likened the issue of paying for the bandwidths to the usual scenario when customers needed to pay for the delivery fee when the Internet streaming media company Netflix sends DVDs via snail mail.
"It would've been neither right nor legal for Netflix to demand a customer's neighbors pay the cost of delivering his movie," he added. "If there's a cost of delivering Mr. Hastings' movies at the quality level he desires -- and there is -- then it should be borne by Netflix and recovered in the price of the service."
Comcast, the world's largest mass media and communications company,on the other hand, retorted saying that in comparison with Netflix, it ismore committed to the open Internet.
The company's EVP David Cohen told Financial Times that providers normally pay for their Internet connections at a fair price. They also have ways to check if their customers get good Internet connection quality.
